What is BS EN 13398 - The elastic recovery of modified bitumen about?
BS EN 13398 is a European standard on bitumen and bituminous binders that discusses the elastic recovery of bitumen.
BS EN 13398 specifies a method for the determination of the elastic recovery of bituminous binders in a ductilometer at the test temperature (typically 25 °C or 10 °C; other temperatures can be used).
BS EN 13398 is especially applicable to bituminous binders modified with thermoplastic elastomers but can also be used with other bituminous binders which generate only small recovery.
Who is BS EN 13398 - The elastic recovery of modified bitumen for?
BS EN 13398 on bitumen and bituminous binders is useful for:
- Manufacturers of bituminous products
- Manufacturers of binders and sealing materials
- Manufacturers and suppliers of thermoplastic polymers
Why should you use BS EN 13398 - The elastic recovery of modified bitumen?
The elastic recovery of modified bitumen is expressed as a percentage of the distance between the ends of the half-threads, which has developed 30 min after cutting relative to the elongation length, which is in general 200 mm.
BS EN 13398 provides laboratory apparatus and glassware together with specimen moulding equipment, ductilometer and mould release agent.
BS EN 13398 navigates you through the preparation of test samples of the bituminous binder and of the moulds filling and conditioning.
BS EN 13398 describes the test procedure on bituminous binders to determine the elastic recovery and specifies the calculation and the expression of the report on the elastic recovery of modified bitumen.
Moreover, BS EN 13398 let you manufacture high-quality bituminous binders ensuring the elastic recovery to give a measure of tensile properties of bituminous materials, helping to bind building materials together. As a result, you can get binder bitumen for your structure with excellent water-proofing properties which are widely used for making roofing products along with a range of other household and industrial applications.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN 13398:2017 supersedes BS EN 13398:2010. BS EN 13398:2017 includes some technical changes with respect to BS EN 13398:2010. These include:
- Incorrect reference to ISO 5725 for rounding off values removed
- The possibility of alternative measuring conditions is now mentioned in principle
- The maximum temperature for the pre-heating of moulds is linked to the softening point (ring and ball) of the specimen or to 70 °C if softening point (ring and ball) is not known
- Other test conditions are now part of the principle.

